Western Europe - Culture Smart!: the essential guide to customs & culture

ThehistoriccountriesofWesternEurope–Austria,Belgium,Britain,France,Germany,Ireland,Italy,Portugal,Netherlands,Spain,andSwitzerland–arethejewelsinthecrownofEuropeancivilization.Theirimportanceandattractionfortherestoftheworldaresogreatthattheregionistheprimetraveldestinationforbusinesspeople,tourists,andstudents.WesternEuropeisarelativelycompactgeographicalarea,containinganenormousdiversityoflandscapes,peoples,andcultures.ThehistoricallycompetitiveWesternEuropeansareunlikeeachotherinmanyways,yetshareanunderlyingsystemofvalues,andtherestlessWesternEuropeanspiritofenquiry,enterprise,andadventurehashadadecisiveimpactonworldhistory.Inthepast,theirempiresspreadtheirlanguages,religions,arts,andideologiesaroundtheglobe,andtodaytheworldbeatsapathwaytotheirdoors.Forforeignvisitors,firstencountersinWesternEuropecanbeoverwhelming.Therichnessandcomplexityofthedifferentnationalculturesaredifficulttotakein,andpeople’sbehaviorandreactionscanbesurprisinglyunpredictable.Forexample,attitudestotimevary.InGermanyit’srudetobelate;inFranceit’srudetobeontime.Inbusinessthereisarangeofnegotiatingstyles.Andbecausethereismoretocommunicationthanspeech,itiseasytomisreadthesignalsinotherpeople’ssocieties.Evensmilingcansometimesbewrong–inFranceit’sdistinctlyuncooltosmileatstrangers.WesternEuropeisidealforstudenttravelers,businesspeople,oracademicswhowillbevisitingseveralcountriesontheirtripandwhodon’twishtobeburdenedwithelevenbooksondifferentdestinations.Inthisitisunique.Nootherbookcapturestheessenceofelevennationalculturesinasinglevolume.DrawingonthewealthofinformationintheindividualCultureSmart!countryguides,itfocusesonthosesituationsineachcountrywherevisitorsarelikelytocomeintocontactwithlocalpeople.Beyondlistingthedosanddon’ts,itexplainstheculturalcontextofdifferentorunexpectedbehavior.Ittellsyouaboutbeliefsandattitudes,andalertsyoutolocalmannersandsensitiveissues.Fulloffascinatinginsightsandpracticaladvice,itwillhelpyounavigateyourwaythroughunchartedseas,avoidgaffesandmisunderstandings,andestablisharapportwithpeoplewhereveryouare.